Dodgers cut ties with Trevor Bauer: Everything to know about final meeting

The Los Angeles Dodgers released Trevor Bauer on Friday afternoon after a final meeting in which the former All-Star pitcher didn’t show remorse for his actions.

There was little to no chance of a reconciliation between the Dodgers and Trevor Bauer.

Bauer, who’s been accused of sexual assault, was released on Friday following a final meeting. The 31-year-old showed no remorse for his actions, despite the on-the-record accounts that suggest some level of violence. Of course, Bauer maintains his innocence in the matter.

This is why Los Angeles opted to pull the plug on their investment in Bauer, despite the fact that they owe him over $22 million for this season. Bauer has served a 194-game suspension but has since been reinstated with the league. The Dodgers wanted to meet with him one more time to see if there was any chance of him remaining within the organization.

The end result was predictable.

Los Angeles technically has seven days to trade Bauer, but it’s unlikely he’ll have any suitors for now. He can sign a league-minimum contract after that point, and the Dodgers will still owe him his $22 million salary for this year.

Why did the Dodgers release Trevor Bauer now?

To be frank, there was no path back for Trevor Bauer in a Dodgers uniform. There may be no path back for him in an MLB uniform, at least for the time being. Damage has been done to his reputation (and rightly so), and signing him now would be a disaster for any interested organization.

Cutting Bauer should have been an easy decision made long ago, but the Dodgers wanted to do their due diligence and allow the legal process to play out. They also gave Bauer one final opportunity to change their minds, and he failed to do so.

Did the Dodgers want Trevor Bauer to return?

Despite some initial suggestion from Bauer that the organization wanted him to return as recently as Thursday, the Dodgers denied that in their statement after releasing Bauer from his contract:

"“The Dodgers organization believes that allegations of sexual assault or domestic violence should be thoroughly investigated, with due process given to the accused. From the beginning, we have fully cooperated with Major League Baseball’s investigation and strictly followed the process stipulated under MLB’s Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy. Two extensive reviews of all the available evidence in this case – one by Commissioner (Rob) Manfred and another by a neutral arbitrator – concluded that Mr. Bauer’s actions warranted the longest ever active player suspension in our sport for violations of this policy. Now that this process has been completed, and after careful consideration, we have decided that he will no longer be part of our organization.’’"

Will any interested teams sign Trevor Bauer?

The potential of Trevor Bauer signing with any MLB team appears very low at the moment, especially given the uproar from what would be a large segment of fans. His on-field ability is a moot point given the allegations against him off of it. At 31 years old, perhaps he’ll receive another chance someday out of desperation, but that time should not be now.